RICHMOND -- Gov. Tim Kaine said Tuesday he expects to "make some significant changes" to a bill that applies some limits to payday lending.

Senate Bill 1014, which has been approved by both houses of the General Assembly, applies some modest restrictions to payday lenders, limiting the number of outstanding payday loans a borrower can have at one time and requiring licensed lenders to make sure applicants are eligible for loans.

It represents a victory for the payday loan industry in a year that saw numerous attempts to repeal the 2002 law allowing lenders to offer short-term loans of up to $500 at interest rates far greater than the 36 percent annual rate applied to other Virginia financial institutions.

Critics argue payday lending lures cash-strapped borrowers into a debt cycle, forcing them to take out one loan after another to pay off previous cash advances.

The bill remains in the General Assembly while lawmakers sort out minor differences between the versions of SB 1014 passed in the House and Senate.

But Kaine said he's got some issues with payday lending and intends to have his say.

"I've been fairly clear about this," Kaine said. "I don't think there really needs to be two interest rates in Virginia, for those in the military and those who aren't."

Last year, Congress capped annual interest rates for loans to those in the military at 36 percent.

Kaine said he'll talk to SB 1014's sponsor, Sen. Richard Saslaw, D-Fairfax County, before making any changes.

But "you will in near certainty see me make some significant changes to that bill," Kaine said.

It would take a two-thirds majority of the General Assembly to override a governor's veto, but only a majority to strike down one of his amendments.

-- Mason Adams

Senate approves cameras to monitor traffic lights

The Virginia Senate approved legislation Tuesday that would allow localities to install cameras to enforce red lights.

It voted 30-10 to approve House Bill 1778, which allows localities to put cameras at one intersection per 10,000 residents. The bill does grant a half-second grace period.

The Senate has for years pushed for such a measure, known as "photo red," while the House has repeatedly voted it down.

Sen. Marty Williams, R-Newport News, said HB 1778 was the best chance yet to get the bill passed into law. He resisted an attempt to amend the bill, arguing that House members would kill the bill if given a chance to reconsider it.

Sen. Ken Stolle, R-Virginia Beach, agreed.

"It has taken us years to get this bill out of the House of Delegates, and we'd be foolish to send it back to the House of Delegates," Stolle said.

The bill now goes to the governor for his signature.

-- Mason Adams

House passes Senate's bill to require boating classes

The House and Senate each approved measures Tuesday to require boating safety classes for Virginia motorboat operators.

On an 88-11 vote, the House approved Senate Bill 1241. That bill has been changed to reflect House Bill 1627, approved in the Senate on a 40-0 vote.

The two bills would phase in a mandatory safety education course or open-book equivalency exam for operators of motorboats and personal watercraft on public waters.

The first phase starts on July 1, 2009, when personal watercraft users 20 years old and younger would have to have the certification. All boaters will be required to have completed the course or exam by 2016. There are a number of exemptions, including those for commercial fishermen, operators of boats with less than 10 horsepower and those who are under the supervision of someone who's completed the course.

The bills grew largely from the outcry at Smith Mountain Lake after an August 2005 wreck in which an intoxicated man crashed his power boat into a cabin cruiser, killing two people and a dog.

-- Mason Adams

Senate votes to allow clinics to close on Sunday

The Virginia Senate voted 40-0 Tuesday to approve legislation that would allow methadone clinics to close on Sundays.

House Bill 2678's sponsor, Del. Onzlee Ware, D-Roanoke, filed the bill because of concerns about traffic congestion around CRC Health Group's treatment clinic at Hershberger and Cove roads. A church is being built next to the clinic.

The bill made it to the Senate floor once before being sent back to committee over concerns about patients who need daily treatment.

Sen. John Edwards, D-Roanoke, amended the bill to address the "security of take-home doses of methadone," which seemed to remedy those concerns.

"The idea is to clarify the bill and also to deal with some of the angst that came up," Edwards said.

Once the amendment is cleared by the House of Delegates, the bill will head to the governor for his signature.

-- Mason Adams